IBT Staff Reporter

Wall Street advanced for a third straight day on Friday, giving the S&P its best weekly performance since early February, but volume remained light as global uncertainty persisted.

Instead of opening up the operating system to developers both large in small, Google will restrict Honeycomb to specific manufacturers and developers.

LOS ANGELES - After The Office aired Thursday night, Steve Carell's character's name, Michael Scott, instantly became a top trending on Twitter.

It was reported by Us Weekly that Prince William will be celebrating his bachelor party this weekend with his close friends.

Thomas Hoenig, one of the most outspoken anti-inflation hawks among senior Federal Reserve officials, will step down as president of the Kansas City Fed October 1, the bank said on Friday.

A futures regulator proposal that would place position limits in the commodities markets may not prevent manipulation or speculation, and would prevent operators of commodity funds from meeting their investment goals, an exchange-traded fund manager said.

Talks on how to approach U.S. corporate tax reform are stirring to life again as Republican House majority leader Eric Cantor backed of push to give multinational companies a break on money imported to the U.S. from their subsidiaries owned in other countries.

The U.S. economy grew more quickly than previously thought in the fourth quarter, the government said on Friday, but signs of softer consumer and business spending may slow its momentum in early 2011.

The Treasury secretary has no plans to exempt certain types of foreign exchange options from heavy new regulations, sources familiar with the matter said, dashing hopes of financial players and corporations who use the products to hedge currency risks.

NASA's Stardust spacecraft performed one final rocket burn and said goodbye to the Comet Hunter.

Oil prices dipped slightly in choppy, thin trade on Friday as traders weighed concerns about Middle East unrest and Libya's conflict as well as demand for oil in quake-hit Japan and debt-laden Europe.

Russia's Rosneft vowed to push ahead with a strategic alliance with BP , despite a block on the deal by the British oil company's partners in joint venture TNK-BP .

NEW YORK, March 25 - The U.S. economy is on a firmer footing, and the U.S. central bank will have to reverse its easy money policy in the not-too-distant future to avoid sowing the seeds of inflation, a top Federal Reserve official said on Friday.

Thomas Hoenig, one of the most outspoken anti-inflation hawks among senior Federal Reserve officials, will step down from the Kansas City Fed October 1 as widely expected after he reaches mandatory retirement age, according to a bank statement on Friday.

Facebook is not behind the web search box that has appeared on the pages of some of its users, the company said.

The Federal Reserve should complete its current round of bond-buying, designed to support the recovery, and likely does not need to extend it, Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said on Friday.

Wall Street advanced for a third straight day on Friday as the tech sector rose on upbeat outlooks, though weak trading volume hinted the rally lacks enthusiasm.

The U.S. economy grew more quickly than previously thought in the fourth quarter, the government said on Friday, but signs of softer consumer and business spending may slow its momentum in early 2011.

The U.S. economic recovery is on solid ground, making it unlikely the Federal Reserve will extend its bond-buying stimulus program, Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank President Dennis Lockhart said on Friday.

A few days ago Universal announced that a number of artists donated their songs for use on a new compilation to be released in aid of the Japan Red Cross following the devastating earthquake and tsunami that his earlier this

Apple's new iPad went on sale in 25 countries internationally on Friday, but the United States is still the cheapest place to buy the latest version of the tablet computer.

Bret Baier, the host of Special Report on the Fox News cable channel in the U.S., said on Thursday that his program has strong journalists and defended his network from charges of bias, saying viewers can easily distinguish between news and opinion.

In honor of Sir Elton John's special day, let's take a look back at ten of his best songs.

The economy grew more quickly than previously estimated in the fourth quarter as businesses maintained fairly solid spending and restocked shelves to meet rising demand.

Financial regulators have clarified that banks can provide services to foreign diplomatic missions and still comply with anti-money laundering laws after several major banks moved to close embassy accounts.

Citing moral and and cultural issues, India will oppose sites with the .XXX domain, an official said.

Research In Motion Ltd faces a tough battle to win back market share in the United States, Wall Street analysts said on Friday, a day after the BlackBerry maker gave a weak outlook.

New questions will focus on getting opinions/learning more about one's friends.

Wall Street advanced on Friday with Oracle's upbeat outlook lifting tech stocks, though weak trading volume hinted the rally lacks enthusiasm.